Multidimensional Peer-Victimization Scale

Abstract

The Multidimensional Peer-Victimization Scale (MPVS) is a psychological assessment tool developed by Mynard and Joseph in 2000 to measure the frequency and nature of various forms of peer victimization experienced by children and adolescents. Moving beyond conventional, single-factor measures of bullying, the MPVS provides a nuanced, multidimensional approach by assessing four distinct categories of aggressive behavior. Comprising 16 items rated on a three-point frequency scale, the instrument offers researchers and clinicians a reliable and precise method for identifying specific patterns of harm within peer relationships.

Keywords

Peer victimization, Bullying assessment, Aggression measurement, Social manipulation, Psychological scale, Adolescent psychology, Peer relations, Relational aggression, Multi-factor assessment.

Authors

Helen Mynard, Stephen Joseph

Purpose

The core purpose of the MPVS is to deliver a detailed, empirically grounded measurement of the complex experiences associated with peer victimization. Traditional instruments often fail to differentiate between various types of aggressive actions, treating the experience as a monolithic concept. The MPVS addresses this limitation by distinguishing between forms of attack, which is essential for understanding the varied psychological sequelae—such as specific anxiety profiles or depression—linked to physical harm versus social exclusion.

By quantifying the frequency of these distinct experiences, the scale serves both clinical assessment and large-scale epidemiological investigations. It allows researchers to accurately investigate specific risk factors, protective mechanisms, and resulting adjustment difficulties tied to each of the four dimensions of victimization, thereby informing targeted intervention strategies aimed at enhancing school safety and improving peer dynamics.

Construct

The MPVS is designed to measure the construct of Peer Victimization, which is defined within this framework as the repeated exposure to negative actions perpetrated by one or more peers over a specified duration. The scale operationalizes this construct through a four-factor model, recognizing that these dimensions are distinct yet often co-occurring:

• Physical Victimization: Involves direct bodily harm or threats of physical violence (e.g., punching, kicking).
• Verbal Victimization: Encompasses the direct use of insulting, demeaning, or hostile language (e.g., name-calling, swearing).
• Social Manipulation: Refers to indirect or relational aggression intended to damage the victim’s social standing, reputation, or peer relationships (e.g., spreading rumors, deliberate social exclusion).
• Property Attacks: Actions specifically targeting the victim’s possessions, including theft or deliberate damage.

This multidimensional perspective is vital because an individual may experience high levels of one type of victimization (e.g., verbal abuse) while experiencing low levels of another (e.g., physical harm), necessitating separate scores for a comprehensive and accurate clinical profile.

Validity

The development of the MPVS was firmly rooted in established theoretical models of aggression, ensuring robust face validity and content validity during its initial design. Empirical support for the scale’s structural integrity comes from its factor structure, which consistently confirms the separation of the four distinct subscales, thereby supporting its construct validity. This demonstrates that the MPVS is effectively measuring four empirically separate components of the overarching peer victimization experience.

Furthermore, the scale has been extensively adopted in subsequent research, establishing strong evidence of its predictive and concurrent validity. Scores derived from the MPVS consistently correlate meaningfully with other measures of psychological distress, anxiety, and depression, confirming its utility in identifying youth who are experiencing negative psychological outcomes associated with differential peer victimization experiences.

Reliability

The internal consistency of the Multidimensional Peer-Victimization Scale was rigorously evaluated during its development phase using Cronbach’s Alpha coefficients. The results indicated strong internal reliability across all four subscales, confirming that the items within each specific dimension are consistently measuring the intended underlying construct.

The reported internal consistency coefficients are highly satisfactory for psychological research instruments:

• Physical victimization: 0.85
• Verbal victimization: 0.75
• Social manipulation: 0.77
• Property attacks: 0.73

These coefficients collectively affirm the MPVS as a highly reliable instrument capable of assessing differential experiences of peer victimization with precision.

Factor Analysis

The empirical foundation of the MPVS rests upon the use of factor analytic techniques employed during its creation. These analyses confirmed a clear and robust four-factor solution, providing strong statistical evidence for the theoretical distinction between the measured types of victimization. This empirical confirmation of four distinct factors—Physical Victimization, Verbal Victimization, Social Manipulation, and Attacks on Property—justifies the scale’s name and its application as a truly multidimensional assessment tool.

This structure dictates how the 16 items are grouped into the four corresponding subscales, enabling the calculation of separate scores for each dimension. This methodology offers a significant advantage over instruments that yield only a single score for bullying, providing greater diagnostic precision in both research and clinical settings.

Instrument

Test Type: Self-report questionnaire

Format: 16 items utilizing a 3-point Likert scale based on frequency of experience.

Language Available: Primarily English (original version), with translations utilized in subsequent international research studies.

Population Group: Children and adolescents (School-aged youth)

Age Group: Typically utilized with middle school and high school populations.

Population Details: The scale is specifically designed for administration within general school populations to assess the prevalence and nature of peer aggression experiences.

Test Methodology: Respondents are asked to indicate how frequently they have experienced each negative action listed on the scale over a predefined time period (e.g., the last academic term or semester).

Keywords

Psychological measurement, Relational aggression, Physical abuse, Property damage, School violence, Social exclusion, Adolescent development, Victimization research.

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Not provided in source material.

Affiliation Email addresses: [email protected]

Correspondence Address: Stephen Joseph, PhD, Centre for Trauma, Resilience, and Growth, University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG7 2RD, UK. Tel: +44 115 951 5410.

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The original development and publication year of the scale is 2000.

The scale is copyrighted by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Reproduction, distribution, or adaptation requires special permission from the publisher, John Wiley & Sons Inc., 111 River Street, Mail Stop 8-02, Hoboken, NJ 07030. Further reproduction is strictly prohibited without explicit permission from Wiley-Liss, Inc., a subsidiary of John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

The instrument is also featured in the assessment tools compendium, “Measuring Bullying Victimization, Perpetration, and Bystander Experiences,” published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The original PDF can be downloaded here: http://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/bullycompendiumbk-a.pdf

Reference’s

Mynard, H., & Joseph, S. (2000). Development of the Multidimensional Peer-Victimization Scale. Aggressive Behavior, 26, 169–178.

Items of the Multidimensional Peer-Victimization Scale

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

1. Called me names
2. Tried to get me into trouble with my friends
3. Took something of mine without permission
4. Made fun of me because of my appearance
5. Made fun of me for some reason
6. Punched me
7. Kicked me
8. Hurt me physically in some way
9. Beat me up
10. Tried to break something of mine
11. Tried to make my friends turn against me
12. Stole something from me
13. Refused to talk to me
14. Made other people not talk to me
15. Deliberately damaged some property of mine
16. Swore at me